आत्मसम्भाविता: स्तब्धा धनमानमदान्विता: |
यजन्ते नामयज्ञैस्ते दम्भेनाविधिपूर्वकम् || 17||
अहङ्कारं बलं दर्पं कामं क्रोधं च संश्रिता: |
मामात्मपरदेहेषु प्रद्विषन्तोऽभ्यसूयका: || 18||
ātma-sambhāvitāḥ stabdhā dhana-māna-madānvitāḥ
yajante nāma-yajñais te dambhenāvidhi-pūrvakam
ahankāraṁ balaṁ darpaṁ kāmaṁ krodhaṁ cha sanśhritāḥ
mām ātma-para-deheṣhu pradviṣhanto ’bhyasūyakāḥ
ātma-sambhāvitāḥ—self-conceited; stabdhāḥ—stubborn; dhana—wealth; māna—pride; mada—arrogance; anvitāḥ—full of; yajante—perform sacrifice; nāma—in name only; yajñaiḥ—sacrifices; te—they; dambhena—ostentatiously; avidhi-pūrvakam—with no regards to the rules of the scriptures; ahankāram—egotism; balam—strength; darpam—arrogance; kāmam—desire; krodham—anger; cha—and; sanśhritāḥ—covered by; mām—me; ātma-para-deheṣhu—within one’s own and bodies of others; pradviṣhantaḥ—abuse; abhyasūyakāḥ—the demoniac
Translation:
Self-honoured, haughty, filled with the pride and the intoxication of wealth, they ostentatiously perform sacrifices, which are so only in name, in utter disregard of precepts. Possessed of egotism, power, and pride, and also of lust and wrath, these people, envious by nature, hate Me in the bodies of others and in their own.
Commentary:
Atmasambhavitah, pradvishantah: By these two words two great evils are exposed 1. Self-glorification, and 2. humiliating others. This is the first sign of ignorance. The ignorant consider themselves learned, wise, great and glorious. On the other side, they belittle other people and try to expose their defects and humiliate them. They hate God, the ruler of the universe because they cannot be reconciled to anyone greater or higher than themselves. They oppose the laws of God as declared in the Vedas and the Sastras. They are blinded by their own wealth, power and prosperity. They perform sacrifices with great ostentation to glorify their own name. They have no devotion. Such sacrifices are contrary to the ordinances prescribed in the Sastras.
Mam atmaparadeheshu: They hate Paramatma who is dwelling in the hearts of all beings, as well as in their own hearts. The Lord is present in every being as the Eternal witness. Not realising this truth, men of demonical nature hate others and are hated by others of such nature. To hate another being is to hate the Lord who is present in him. In the same way, to love another being is to love the Lord Himself. Men who worship the Lord do not hate others at all (adveṣhṭā sarva-bhūtānāṁ). Men who hate and injure others are hating God Himself who is ever-present in them. The stronger terms Samsritah and Pradvishantah are used to suggest that they are held powerfully by kama and krodah, and hate the Lord intensely.
Question: What further are the qualities of men of demonical nature?
Answer: 1. They glorify themselves. 2. They are devoid of humility towards elders, 3. They are intoxicated with the pride of wealth, 4. They perform sacrifices ostentatiously for the sake of name and fame. 5. Pride, (animal) strength, lust, greed, and hatred, possess them. 6. They hate the Lord who is dwelling in their hearts, and the hearts of others 7. They are full of jealousy (envious of other’s prosperity).
Question: Where is God?
Answer: He is present as the Eternal Lord in all beings.
The Lord, having declared the fate of diabolical men in the 16th verse continues the description of such men, in these two verses also.
Evidently, the teacher of the Gita wants His disciple to understand the horrible nature and the terrible fate that shall overtake such men. Nothing can save such men from self-destruction. They may be rich, powerful and learned also, but nothing can change the course of their life, because they deny the existence of Paramatma and consider life only as a field for sensual gratification. Mere cleverness, worldly intelligence and wisdom do not take them outside the category of the Rakshasas. They possess many powers as we find in the case of Ravana and Hiranyakaspu, but they are ignorant of the one basic truth, namely, that all they possess is derived from the Lord Himself, and d He is the supreme Purusha present in all beings. These demonical characteristics poison the hearts of many people in this world. Such men are all Rakshasas in the human form. The impure impluses of kama and krodha are demons having taken possession of man’s being. The seekers should thoroughly search their hearts and find out these dark and evil spirits, and drive them out by the sheer force of will and the grace of the Lord. The sattvic power of men is capable of destroying these rajasic and tamasic forces. The sattvic power has already been described by the Lord as Daivisampat, beginning with abhayam as its’ first principle. These divine qualities should be grafted into one’s own nature and as they grow stronger and stronger, the enemical forces are quelled and vanquished. Victory will be sure.
The scriptural call for the divine, ‘Oye Devas! come, O ye Rakshasas go’ – should be followed by all the aspirants. The evil spirits should quit and the Divine beings should come to occupy the heart. Thus man’s heart is transformed into the temple of God, in which Atmajnana dawn in due time.
Bhagavad Gita: Chapter 16 🔻 (24 Verses)
